Sorting devices of this general type exist in many different embodiments and may be used for sorting discs of widely different kinds. A common field of application is coin sorting. In this field of application, the discs are constituted by coins and their identities are represented by their denomination and may be separated by dimension, weight, electrical properties, radio frequency identification (RF ID) or any other characteristic of the coins by which they differ from the others. There are also fields of application other than coin sorting such as sorting tokens, labeling discs, electrical and optical filter discs, coil cores and so on.
Still another field of application is the sorting of gaming chips and the like, and the invention will be illustrated by the description of the embodiment which is particularly adapted for the sorting of gaming chips. However, the applicability of the invention is not limited to the sorting of gaming chips, but also embraces sorting of other discs or disc-like articles.
Another apparatus for sorting and/or handling of disc-like members was invented in 1978, see U.S. Pat. No. 4,157,139 assigned to Bertil Knutsson. This device is called the Chipper Champ. The device described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,157,139 however uses a conveyor belt to separate and distribute the articles. The apparatus is rather complex as it uses a lot of mechanical parts to separate, transport and stack the disc-like articles. In addition, after having identified the unique characteristics of the any one of the articles, the apparatus is only capable of stacking one article at any one given time. Furthermore, the device is very large and, when using the apparatus for sorting gaming chips, the device interferes with the operator as it not only reduces the available working space of the apron on a roulette table, it also impedes the movement of the dealer on the floor.
After separation, the gaming chips are stacked into a rack in which ten columns are placed in a horizontal plane at 45 degrees, one next to the other. With this device, the dealer is only able to stand to one side of the device, and not directly behind it, as the distance to the roulette table is too far to reach. This necessitates, on occasion, the dealer having to extend his arm and body laterally to retrieve chips from the farthest columns. This creates an uncomfortable and unnatural working condition.
Due to the internal mechanical design of the Chipper Champ, the device can jam, and break or damage the gaming chips.
Besides the abovementioned apparatus, other devices have been produced specifically for use within the gaming industry. One of these is called the ChipMaster from CARD (Casino Austria Research and Development), the Chameleon and the Chipper 2000 (U.S. Pat. No. 6,075,217). The ChipMaster is only used by CARD and is a mechanically very complex device. Its operation is unique in that it pushes the gaming chips through the table but this requires substantial modification to the gaming table for it to be fitted. In addition, the device is substantial in size and is specifically designed for a roulette table. The Chameleon has been withdrawn from the market due to operational flaws and the Chipper 2000 is an exact copy of the Chipper Champ mentioned above.
The present invention is aimed at one or more of the problems identified above.